How to Turn Friendship Into Love

Turning a friendship into love can be challenging, especially if you’re unsure about your friend’s feelings for you. Falling in love with a friend can be a promising prospect, but making a transition from friendship to romantic interest requires precautions before you take the leap. Moving beyond a platonic relationship changes the entire dynamic of your interaction. Ultimately, if your romantic involvement fails, you risk the possibility that your friendship will significantly change.

Step 1

Identify your feelings. Take some time to distinguish between the platonic feelings you have for your friend and those of a romantic nature. Social worker, professor and author of “Buddy System: Understanding Male Friendships,” Geoffrey Greif, says that “Men often feel more comfortable disclosing intimacies to women than to men,” so determine whether you’re mistaking the intimacy of friendship for something more before you disclose your emotions.

Step 2

Examine your options. Ensure that you have evaluated the possible benefits of revealing your romantic interest against the risk of losing your friendship. Revealing your romantic interest in your friend can take an immense amount of courage because you’re exposing yourself to the possibility of being rejected. On the other hand, taking the risk and exposing vulnerability may facilitate a strong foundation for a loving relationship. Psychologists Charles D. and Elizabeth A. Schmitz, writing for SelfGrowth.com, say, “If you wait to make a commitment until you have no doubts, it will never happen.”